Engine starting mechanism



June 22, 1937. R. P. LANSING 2,084,813

ENGINE STARTING MECHANISM Original Filed Aug. 6, 1931 INVENTOR.

gay/77000;? ans/by 1%? TTOR Patented June 22, 1937 ENGINE STARTINGMECHANISM Raymond P. Lansing, Montclair, N. 3., assignor to EclipseAviation Corporation, East Orange, N. J., a corporation of New JerseyOriginal application August 6, 1931, Serial No. 555,633. Divided andthis application August 17, 1936,. serial No. 96,494

1 Claim.

This invention relates to a starter for an engine such as an internalcombustion engine, and pertains more particularly to the means forconnecting the starting motor or other source of power to a memberNorpart of the engine to be started and thereafter transmittin powerthereto to start the engine.

Ansobject of the invention is to provide a novel starter of the typeembodying a drive which is characterized by the employment of .arotatable driving member, or prime mover, such as an electric motor, anda driven member, such asa pinion, mounted on the armature shaft of themotor for longitudinal movement thereof and rotary movement therewith,and adapted to be drivably connected with the engine member.

Another object is to provide in a starter having the foregoingcharacteristics, novel means for effecting automatic movement of thedriven memher into mesh with the engine member in response toenergization of the prime mover, and prior to any rotary movement of thedriven member.

A further object is to provide automatic meshing means of the foregoingcharacter adapted to 25 be actuated by novel resilient transmittingmeans capable of exerting an axial thrust upon the driven member inresponse to rotary movement of the driving member.

30 A further object is to provide novel means for causing the gradualestablishment of a driving connection between the prime mover and drivenmember subsequent to the attainment of the meshed condition. In thisconnection, a feature 35 of the invention is the employment of novelimpact absorbing means in the dual capacity of yieldably actuating thedriven member in its These and other objects and advantages to bederived from the use of the invention disclosed herein will becomeevident on an inspection of the following description when read withreference to the accompanying drawing illustrating one embodiment of theinvention. It is to'be' relative large diameter with which the pinion i5expressly understood, however, that the drawing is for the purpose ofillustration only, and. is not to be construed as a definition of thelimits of the invention, reference being had for this purpose to theappended claim. 5

In the drawing, which is a view in elevation of a starter embodying theinvention, reference character 3 designates an electric motor having anextended armature shaft t to which is rigidly secured, by suitablemeans, such as a key 5 and a set screw 6, a sleeve or collar 1, havingan outer cylindrical rim 8 rigidly connected, as by means of rivets 9,for example, to a pair of complemental clutch members it and II,constituting part of the novel means for converting the rotation of theshaft l into, first, a meshing, and then a rotary movement of theengine-engaging member to be described hereafter.

The novel means for producing automatic meshing action between thestarter and the engine to be started in response to energization of theprime mover 3 preferably comprises an engine-engaging member M which inthe embodiment now being described is-constituted by an elongatedsleeve, loosely fitting on the shaft 4 and provided at its inner endwith an enlarged portion constituting a pinion adapted to drive theengine member l6, which may be the engine flywheel, on which is provideda. spur gear ll, of

is caused to mesh on longitudinal movement along the shaft 4.

Mounted on the threaded portion H of the engine-engaging member is acorrespondingly threaded nut 18 having a splined or equivalentconnection, as indicated at l3 and I9, with the clutch member ID, andpreferably nut l8 carries means for normally holding the member ll in.the position indicated with a yieldable force. As shown, such meanstakes the form of a spring pressed member I! provided in a recess in thenut i8, and exerting the desired amount of frictional pressure on thesurface of member ll. With this construction it is evident that uponenergization of the motor} by suitable means (not shown) the resultinginitial rotation of shaft 6, communicated to the nut l8 through thecollar 1, barrel I0, and splines l9, produces a screw action on thesleeve l4 causing the latter to move to the left as shown in broken lineposition in Fig. 1 overcoming the light frictional restraining effect ofthe spring pressed member I 2 and establishing meshed relation betweenthe pinion l5 and the gear I1.

The novel means for controlling the application of torque to the pinionl5 and gear I! after these two members have become meshed comprises inconjunction with the clutch members l and II, a cylindrical resilientmember 20 of compressible material, preferably rubber, having itsopposite ends abutting the nut l8 and the member II, respectively. Theeffect of this construction is that upon continued rotation of the shaft4 following establishment of meshed relation, and 1 due to theprevention of any further longitudinal movement of thesleeve I 4 byvirtue of the contact of stop 2| thereon with the inwardly turned end 22of the clutch member H, the nut I8 is caused to travel to the right asviewed in Fig. 1, thereby compressing the cylindrical buffer 210 andgradually building up therein, 'a resistance which. when it has reachedthe required point, will be effective to cause the transmission ofdriving torque to the sleeve l4 throughthe member I 8 and thus causerotation of the engine member Hi. .When the engine has been started bythe means just described, and the motor 3 de-energ'ized, the resultingdeceleration of the member l8, in conjunction with the acceleration ofthe sleeve I4 (which is now driven by the engine member l6) causes thereturn ofthe nut l8 to the position shown in-Fig. 1, in which positionthe stress; previously built up in the member 20 is eliminated. At thesame time these forces act to return the sleeve M to the position shownin Fig. 1 thereby demeshing the pinion.

In the event that the teeth of pinion l5 fail to register with those ofthe gear I! on first contact therewith, the resistance thus offered tofurther longitudinal movement of the sleeve I 4 will cause the nut l8 tocompress the buffer 20 and thereby produce rotation of the members l3 ,5and M to a sufiicient extent to cause proper meshing of the pinion withthe gear, whereupon the elasticity of the buffer 20 is effective toexert a thrust through the nut It, on the sleeve I I, to cause thepinion to move forward into full meshing position. It is thus apparentthat the buffer 20 may act not only as the torque transmitting means,but also as the means for insuring full mesh of the pinion with the gear11 in the event of abutting of the teeth of these two members.

This application is a division of my prior case, Serial No. 555,633,filed Aug. 6, 1931.

What is claimed is:-

In a device of the class described, a driving shaft, a driven gear, amember connected with 20 said shaft to rotate therewith, a nut splinedto said member for rotary movement therewith and limited movementaxially thereof, a sleeve freely mounted on said shaft and threadedlyengaging said nut, a plurality of teeth on said sleeve engageable withthe teeth of said gear on movement of said sleeve along said shaft, andcompressible means interposed between said rotatable member and said nutfor absorbing the shock incident to the application of torque to saidpinion and gear 30 through said nut.

. RAYMOND P. LANSING.

